Almost half of all workers in the UAE claim that they are
not being paid enough, according to the findings of a study published on
Sunday.

According to Bayt.com’s latest Consumer Confidence Survey,
47 percent of employees in the Gulf state are dissatisfied with their current
level of compensation.

The research also found that 74 percent of respondents believe
that there is a lack of available jobs in the country, while 66 percent said
that salary raises were not keeping up with the rising costs of living.

“The present sentiment across the region seems to be
somewhat conservative. However, our respondents demonstrated positive sentiment
for the future,” said Suhail Masri, vice president of sales, Bayt.com.

Just over a third (35 percent) of UAE residents said they
expected the cost of living to increase during the next year, while 32 percent
anticipated that real estate in the UAE would become more expensive.

Only half of respondents (49 percent) said that they
believed their financial situation would improve over the next 12 months and a
similar number (47 percent) held out hope for the UAE’s economic situation
getting better during the same time frame.

Across the whole of the Middle East and North Africa, only a
quarter (26 percent) of respondents said they thought their personal finance
situation would have improved in 12 months’ time.

The UAE is one of the richest countries in the world, with a
GDP per capita of approximately US$67,000.